Former Tourism Minister Matt Conlan slams NT Government’s response to Don Dale abuse

The embattled Northern Territory government has been lashed by one of its own politicians, who says the response to the child prison abuse scandal has lacked compassion

The embattled Northern Territory Government has been lashed by one of its own politicians, who says the response to the child prison abuse scandal has lacked compassion and sought to blame everyone else for its own failings.

Matt Conlan, the former tourism minister who is retiring at next month’s election, said the government’s response had been inadequate.

Former NT Tourism Minister Matt Conlan. PICTURE: Aaron Burton

“It has lacked compassion,” he told ABC local radio on Thursday. “I think we need to take responsibility for what has happened, particularly on our watch; it feels that everyone else has been responsible for the treatment of these children in detention except the NT Government.

“I have not heard once the Chief Minister offer an apology or admit responsibility for what’s taken place from 2012, at least, and I think once I heard Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd being blamed for this it became very clear that we as a government had lost all perspective with the issue. It just sounded very desperate.”

Mr Conlan acknowledged that the children involved were “difficult” and knew how to push officers’ buttons, but that wasn’t a green light to abuse them.

“The brutality, the complete deprivation of basic living requirements, and the sneering and the satisfaction and the joy that it seemed to bring to these prison officials, it’s just absolutely beyond belief,” Mr Conlan said.

“I’m so sorry these children were subjected to this treatment. I’m just so sorry that as a member of the cabinet, as a minister of the crown, at the time that I didn’t make it my business and essentially allowed it to continue.”

He said it was imperative that Attorney-General John Elferink had nothing to do with shaping the terms of reference for the investigation into his own actions as former corrections minister.

“I think that would be an abject failure and a serious conflict,” Mr Conlan said.

“I do believe the prison system and the juvenile justice system is in better shape now than it was just a couple of years ago. I do think the former corrections minister has gone to significant lengths to make sure that some of those issues were addressed, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that this sort of thing took place.”

Meanwhile, there are reports the NT Government is considering moving children from Don Dale to the Wickham Point immigration detention facility following Four Corners’ damning report into abuse at the youth detention centre.

Wickham Point has been decommissioned by the Federal Government, with the last remaining detainees relocated in June this year.